Home sides come out on top

Macedonian giants HC Vardar swiftly bounced back from last week’s shock defeat at KIF Kolding Kobenhavn, after a blistering display against KS Vive Tauron Kielce in their Group B clash on Saturday.

The home side dominated the match from start to finish and stayed top of the section with 10 points from six games ahead of the two-week long break.

Both Szeged and Barcelona had to fight a full 60 minutes to earn their points in two enthralling head-to-heads.

GROUP B:

HC Vardar (MKD) vs KS Vive Tauron Kielce (POL) 34:24 (18:14)

Last week’s defeat in Denmark had cast doubts over Vardar’s consistency but the Group B leaders responded with an effervescent performance to beat Kielce, getting sweet revenge for their quarter-final defeat by the Polish side last season.

It was clear from the start that Kielce faced a difficult afternoon as the home side romped into an early 6:2 lead, with their scorching long-range efforts whizzing past visiting goalkeeper Slawomir Szmal.

Driven by a raucous atmosphere in the jam-packed Jane Sandanski arena, Vardar also exploited a flurry of two-minute suspensions picked up by Kielce in the opening half.

Indisciplined defending cost the visitors as Vardar also found space on either flank and on the six-metre line, with Russian winger Timur Dibirov leading the charge.

He netted five goals in the first 30 minutes and his compatriot Sergei Gorbok joined the party after the interval, as Vardar stayed firmly in the driving seat aided by sound goalkeeping from Arpad Sterbik.

An array of attacking solutions left Kielce’s defence in tatters and the Polish side’s last attempt to get back into the match was when they scored three unanswered goals midway through the second half, slashing the deficit to 26:20.

Roared on from the terraces, Vardar hit back by scoring four without reply as Dibirov and Gorbok ran riot, with Spanish pivot Julen Aguinaglade cutting a lonesome figure for Kielce at the other end.

Vardar’s Russian sharpshooters finished with eight goals each and their compatriot Daniil Shishkarev added four, while Aguinagalde scored six and Michal Jurecki netted four for the visitors.

Head coach of Kielce Talant Dujshebaev commented post match: "I‘m very unhappy because sometimes you lose games, but the way we lost today was bad. Arpad Sterbik was really great today.

"They were better than us and I want to congratulate to their coach Raul, the players and everyone in Vardar.

"We will try to analyse what happened and we will try to avoid such mistakes in future games."

MOL-Pick Szeged (HUN) vs Montpellier HB (FRA) 28:27 (14:14)

MOL-Pick Szeged and Montpellier had a chance to renew their rivalry, after the French team lost the Men’s EHF Cup two seasons ago at the hands of their Hungarian counterparts.

But Montpellier failed to avenge their painful one-goal defeat, as Szeged scraped a win in a high-octane game.

It was a scrappy first half, with the lead changing hands seven times. Neither team could master more than a three-goal advantage.

But Szeged looked more polished and took the game to their opponents pulling off a 5:0 run between the 18th and the 23rd minute, turning the game on its head.

However, the hosts failed to protect their advantage and after a shaky start in the second half, they had to come from behind to regain the lead in the 41st minute (20:19).

It was the Slovenian connection of Dragan Gajic and Jure Dolenec - who worked wonders last week against Kristianstad - that kept Montpellier in the game.

In fact, Montpellier’s last nine goals were scored solely by Slovenians.

However, for the last 10 minutes the French side had no answer in defense to Szeged’s attacking prowess.

Backed by an amazing fans, Szeged maintained their cool, as Bombac - the team’s top scorer (with eight goals) - and Garcia Parrondo scored making it 28:26 and the hosts held out for the win.

Therefore, it is now Szeged who have the upper hand against the French side, as the Hungarian team lies in fifth place, tied on six points with KS Vive Tauron Kielce.

Montpellier is tied in sixth place with Kristianstad on four points each.

Juan Carlos Pastor, head coach of MOL-Pick Szeged commented post match:  "There was a lot of pressure on the team, we didn't play well in offense nor in defense.

"We played with a lot of heart, and that is why we succeeded today.

"Montpellier played very well, and they made our job very difficult."

FC Barcelona Lassa (ESP) vs KIF Kolding Kobenhavn (DEN) 28:25 (11:13)

Barcelona showed the makings of a champion to fight back from a staggering 10:2 deficit early in the game and prevail thanks to terrific performances by their key players in an enthralling contest.

The first quarter of the game would have left any oblivious handball fan wondering which one of these two teams headed into the clash as the VELUX EHF Champions League holders.

Barcelona, who have won a record eight titles, were blown away by Kolding in the opening 15 minutes and looked completely at sea against their fired up rivals.

One Barca turnover after another, coupled with a string of superb saves by Kolding goalkeeper Kasper Hvidt, allowed the visitors a flurry of fast breaks which they converted with ruthless efficiency.

The Danish side were driven by their backcourt duo of Bo Spellerberg and emerging star Lasse Andersson, who unleashed a barrage of thunderbolts leaving the home team’s keeper Gonzalo Perez de Vargas clutching air.

However, the tide began to turn in the last 10 minutes of the first half as Barcelona’s backs Filip Jicha and Kiril Lazarov, particularly the latter, found their range in attack while the home side also shored up their defensive leaks.

Having slashed the deficit to just two goals at the interval, Barcelona came storming out in the second half and tied the game at 14:14 before another lapse in concentration let Kolding take a 19:16 lead heading into the home straight.

At that point, the overall gulf in quality and experience made the difference as Andersson and Spellerberg started to show signs of fatigue while Lazarov and Jicha, the latter conjuring perhaps his best performance in a Barcelona shirt, fired on all cylinders.

Having forced the final twist with a 5:1 run, Barcelona carved out a two-goal lead (25:23) for the first time in the match after winger Aitor Arino struck twice from the left flank.

They forced Kolding into submission amid wild cheers from the home crowd as Lazarov finished with a game-high 10 goals to take over as the competition’s top scorer with an overall tally of 45.

Jicha added seven for Barcelona, while Andersson scored eight and Spellerberg netted seven for Kolding, who can head home with their pride intact after giving the champions an almighty scare. 

"We are a bit disappointed because we've been close to winning, at least, one point. We knew it was very difficult to play here but our home has been a dream. With some players we have maintained our style. We leave with mixed feelings. Sweet for the game and sour not take a point "